


He Works Hard for the Money

by etre



Category: DCU - Comicverse
Genre: M/M, Pornstars, tim is a stalker
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-01-12
Updated: 2013-02-21
Packaged: 2017-11-25 05:46:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/635732
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/etre/pseuds/etre
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tim's a college student trying to pay his way through graduate school by working a job on the side. Jason is a serial part-timer, living in a second-rate apartment and working to pay the bills. Their meeting is unremarkable, their attraction written off as implausible. That is, until Jason finds out that Tim is a porn star on the side...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First Meetings

**Author's Note:**

> So this started out as a college AU and sort of... mutated. I've been working on this for a while, but it's not finished. I'll try to post semi-regularly, but I'm a college student myself. ;)
> 
> Title taken from a song by Donna Summers.

The first time Tim met Jason was nothing special. Tim was picking up an engineering textbook at the school bookstore. Jason was working the cash register.

Really, nothing special.

Except once Tim looked, he couldn’t stop. His eyes flicked to the guy’s name tag- Jason- and back up. He forced a smile as he accepted his purchase from the cashier. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” The guy- Jason, his name is Jason- didn’t sound particularly happy, but he didn’t sound angry either. Neutral. Tim was good at neutral, used to it. He took his book and turned away, smiling at Jason a little shyly. 

His smile fell as soon as he turned away, face re-assuming its default expression as his mind began to race. He, Tim Drake, 20-year-old graduate student at one of the country’s top universities, with a 4.0 GPA and a part-time job, did not have time for silly crushes.

He wouldn’t let this distract him.

________________________________________ 

The second time Jason saw Tim was a little unusual. He was pretty sure he didn’t know the guy sitting in the cafe sneaking glances at him. It was a kid with dark hair, trying to look casual as he sipped his overpriced latte. The dim lights of the cafe area gave his hair red highlights, matching his dark red sweater. Jason was working the register under the unforgiving fluorescents of the textbook area, and was pretty sure he wasn’t worth the constant surreptitious looks.

At least the kid was hot. There were bookshelves partially blocking his view, but he could make out the kid’s upper body, which was pretty fine. And he was a kid, that much Jason could tell. He obviously went to the college whose bookstore this was, but he couldn’t be more than a teenager. But seriously, the last thing he needed was some potential jailbait stalker college student. Jason might work at a college bookstore but he sure as hell didn’t go to college.

Jason had never been the studious type. He’d barely passed high school and had laughed in the face of his guidance counselor when she’d suggested he at least apply to the local community college. He was so done with that shit, it had actually been kind of funny. But now he was living in some halfway-decent apartment with two roommates, working several part-time jobs. He couldn’t think of anything better to do with his life, really. Well, he had a few projects on the side, but those weren’t really worth mentioning.

The guy was looking at him again. Jason tried to catch his eye, but he looked down quickly. Whatever. He couldn’t wait for this shift to be over.

________________________________________

“You _spoke_ with him?” Tim’s voice was incredulous as he swiveled in his chair to face Stephanie. “What did he say? What did _you_ say? Wait, were you flirting with him?”  
Stephanie’s knowing grin as she answered was a tad too smug for Tim’s taste. It made him downright uncomfortable, in fact.

“I just asked him his name and where he was from. He had other customers, I couldn’t just stand there all day. He’s from Gotham, big surprise. And his name is Jason.” 

She heard a faint mumble from Tim’s side of the room to the effect of “...knew that ‘lready...” and her grin only widened. “That’s right, you’ve been going to the bookstore a lot more than usual lately. See anything you like?” Tim scowled and turned his chair back to his desk.

“It’s not funny, Steph,” he grumbled, looking back at his open textbook.

“ _Au contraire_ , my friend, it is _adorable_. Your little crush on the cute guy at the bookstore is _adorable_.”

“It’s not a crush. And he probably doesn’t even like guys like that. You know what, go away. I have homework to do.” Steph climbed off of Tim’s bed and crossed the room. 

“It’s okay, Tim. I’m rooting for you! Good luck on that assignment!” She ruffled his hair on her way out the door. He knew she’d be back later that night. They lived on the same floor, after all, and she got bored easily.

Jason Todd, huh. He might have done a little preliminary research on the guy. Just basic information, like, name, age, birthday, height, weight, high school, criminal records. That sort of thing. He knew Jason had grown up in Gotham, gone through the foster care system, graduated from East Gotham high with a GPA of 2.7, was 23 years of age, had no known relatives, and had no criminal record save an open container violation from two years ago.

It wasn’t weird, really. And although he wouldn’t admit it out loud, he definitely had a crush on Jason Todd. At first, it had been a purely physical attraction. He was tall, handsome, and really in shape. So in shape you could tell through his clothes. Not that Tim had looked _that_ hard. But as he’d watched Jason more, he’d noticed... little things. Like Jason’s smile as he dealt with customers (well, the ones who weren’t being jerks. And they were being jerks, Tim knew, cause he’d been _watching_ -), or his casual kindnesses to his co-workers (Tim’s seen him pick up coffees unprompted for the others on his shift), or the way he’d loom menacingly behind anyone who didn’t seem to like the attention being hit on by a customer, or... well. The list went on. Suffice to say, Tim’s purely casual, coincidental observations had turned his superficial attraction into something deeper. 

He sighed as he looked down at his book. He really ought to get this work done tonight. Or he could flip open his laptop and look at the security cameras he’d hacked, just to see if maybe Jason was in tonight... 

No. Homework first. At least, homework until Steph came back to harass him.

...He could just leave the laptop open while he worked, maybe.  


________________________________________ 

The first time they spoke was a little more eventful. At least in Tim’s eyes.

He was out picking up a few vegetables for the stir-fry he planned on making that night. Despite the fact that he had his own apartment, he usually ended up cooking for at least two, if not three people. Steph had a habit of showing up for dinner and dragging her girlfriend along. He didn’t mind, really. It was nice having some noise in the apartment. 

He had met Steph at the beginning of the school year, when he’d become a grad student and Steph had taken it upon herself to befriend everyone on her floor. She was a junior, studying psychology, and had been impressed when Tim had explained that he had already finished his undergrad work. 

Tim had other friends, of course. He was friends with Bart, another engineering student. But he was leery of inviting Bart back to his apartment for fear of the property damage that would ensue. Bart was... enthusiastic. And he liked to think that he could consider some of his coworkers as friends too. Like Cassie, even though he’d never worked directly with her, and Conner. He was definitely friends with Conner. But... it could get awkward, in their line of work. He wasn’t ready to explain to his college friends who his coworkers were. And... Dick? Dick was his boss; was he allowed to consider him a friend? He guessed Dick counted as more of a big brother than anything. 

So, carrots, broccoli, zucchini... what else? Oh, he was getting low on soy sauce. He rounded the corner to the condiment aisle, looking down at his shopping list, and collided with a very large, warm object. Startled, he gasped out a quick “Sorry!” and looked up at the man he’d run into. 

It was Jason. Tim froze, his mouth open, stuck on his apology.

“Sorry, kid,” Jason said, glancing down. His eyes narrowed as he saw Tim, and he stepped out of the way. “Watch where you’re going next time.”

Tim nodded, eyes still wide, and hurried down the aisle. Jason turned to watch him as he fled, considering. He definitely remembered that hair. And sweater. It wasn’t too strange to meet him here, considering they both probably lived near campus, but Jason couldn’t help wondering if it had really been a coincidence. Looks like he’d picked himself up a stalker.

________________________________________ 

Tim woke up before his alarm that Saturday, reaching over to turn it off before it could make any noise. He didn’t have to be at work until noon, so he slept in a little on Saturdays, not getting up until eight. As he went about his morning routine (get up, shower, meditate, eat, brush teeth, coffee), he felt the slightest stirrings of apprehension in his stomach. Today he’d be starting a new series with Conner. He and Conner were good friends, and had great chemistry. He was sure they’d both do great and that the show would be a hit, but... there was just something about working with someone new that made him a little nervous. Tim sighed, settling in to work on his homework until it was time to leave.

As he left his dorm, glancing around to make sure no one he knew was around before turning down the street towards the studio, Tim pulled on his sunglasses. He wasn’t ashamed of his job or anything, he was just aware of the problems it might cause if anyone were to find out about it. He didn’t mind lying, but he preferred to avoid the situation altogether if possible. Stephanie was the only person at school who knew, because he trusted her to keep it quiet. And also because she had found out on her own.

It was only about a fifteen minute walk from campus, and he walked through the studio doors right on time, greeting Babs with a little wave and a shy “Hi” as he passed. Babs still sort of intimidated him. Pushing through the door to the main studio area, Tim headed directly towards his dressing room. A bright call of “Hey! Tim!” brought him up short, and he stopped and had only begun to turn when a heavy weight hit him from behind. Breath momentarily knocked out of him, he turned to face his best friend. 

“Hey Conner. Good to see you too. Do you think you could let go?” Tim laughed breathlessly, pushing at Conner’s arm where it was draped over his shoulder. 

“Yeah, sorry man. Didn’t mean to hit you that hard.” Conner grinned sheepishly, stepping back a little. “How’s school going? You ready for today?” Tim could sense the nervousness underlying Conner’s cheerful inquiries, as he felt the same. He liked to think he was better at hiding it, though. Still, he couldn’t stop the slight blush that colored his cheeks at the second question.

“It’s good, thanks. And I think so. You?” he inquired, putting a teasing smile on his face. Conner might be his friend, but Tim wasn’t willing to show him _everything_ he was feeling just yet.  
He was rewarded by a reciprocal blush from Conner.

“Oh, yeah. I mean-” Conner began, trying to look nonchalant. Tim let his smirk fade into something real, taking pity on him.

“We’re up in thirty minutes, right? We’d better go get dressed,” he noted. Conner nodded and fell into step with him as they continued down the hallway towards their dressing rooms. Tim was still wincing internally, berating himself for flirting with Conner. He definitely didn’t want to lead Conner on, but he couldn’t afford any romantic entanglements right now, especially with his coworkers. 

________________________________________ 

It took Tim almost the whole thirty minutes to get ready, considering the complexity of his costume. He considered himself in the mirror, fingering the mask he’d just glued to his face. Did people really get off on masks? He supposed they must, considering the history of Titans Studio. This costume had been Dick’s a few years ago... Tim could feel the blush threatening to creep back onto his cheeks and turned away from the mirror. Show time. 

He stepped out into the hallway, coming face-to-face with Conner. Or face-to-chest. Conner had a good foot on Tim, at least. He was wearing a too-tight black T-shirt with a crimson “S” emblazoned on it, along with very form-fitting jeans (their costume budget wasn’t unlimited). He looked... really good.

Today they were filming a scene where Robin and Superboy had sex after saving the world from some horrible doom. Pretty usual stuff for Titans Studio, and it wasn’t hard to get into character when Conner looked like that. It certainly wasn’t the first time Superboy and Robin had “teamed up,” either, but Tim still felt a flutter of nervous anticipation at the beginning of each shoot. He smiled up at Conner.

“Ready?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No, this is not a Tim/Kon fic. Sorry, Kon.


	2. The Strange Life of Jason Todd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took so long. I've been distracting myself with TV shows.

“Hey, you assholes better’ve saved me some pizza!” Jason called as he entered his apartment, the smell of hot pizza wafting out. Roy poked his head out of the kitchen and raised an arm in greeting.

“Hey, Jay. Don’t worry, I got two. And Kori’s not gonna be home tonight. No competition.” She was probably out with her boyfriend, Jason figured.

“Sweet.” Jason and Roy exchanged high fives as he advanced on the pizza. Jason had met Roy last year, when he’d gotten a job at the pizza place Roy delivered for. Roy had introduced him to Kori, and well, here they were. Jason still wasn’t entirely sure why Kori’d wanted to live with them, when she could probably afford a penthouse or something with her modeling gig. Maybe she thought it was cool to slum it? Whatever the case, it was nice to have another person to split the rent with, and the three of them got along like a house on fire. In fact, they’d almost set their apartment on fire a few times in the months they’d been living together. 

Jason ate his first piece in three bites, then asked, “Any trouble at work?” He knew how deliveries in Gotham could turn out.

“Nah, it was fine. Couple of assholes who didn’t tip, but eh. Could be worse. How ‘bout you? Anyone try to hold up the bookstore?” Roy pulled two beers out of the fridge and tossed one to Jason, who caught it in the hand that wasn’t holding pizza. 

Jason snorted. “Yeah, right. I might have a stalker, though.”

Roy raised an eyebrow and grinned. “Another hot chick won’t leave you alone? Your life is hard, dude.”

“When has that ever happened? No, it’s some kid who always sits in the cafe. He keeps staring at me.”

“Aw, you scared?”

“Shut the fuck up, man,” Jason laughed. 

“Well, so what? He got the hots for you, too?”

“Fuck if I know.” Jason finished his beer and third slice of pizza.

“So you got anything else to do tonight...?” Roy trailed off, raising one eyebrow suggestively. Jason considered his offer. He, Roy, and Kori fooled around sometimes, but it wasn’t serious. They were pretty much just friends with benefits. It had been a couple days, though...

“Naw, I got places to be. Sorry.” He shook his head regretfully. Roy and Kori never asked where he got off to some nights, and Jason never told. He never asked them either -- they respected each other’s boundaries. For the most part, they stayed out of each other’s business.

“It’s cool. Oh, hey, I almost forgot.” Roy crossed to the counter and picked up a note. “Landlord stopped by today. Left us this,” he said, handing the note to Jason, who took it and cursed.

“Shit, again? That’s like... the third time this year.” He scanned the note. “Another thousand dollars? For what? This is some bullshit.” They’d proved themselves a liability to the integrity of their apartment a few times already, and possibly the entire building. This was their asshole landlord’s attempt to get them back, most likely. He called it “damages”; Jason called it extortion.

Roy hesitated before speaking. “It’s cool, dude, Kori can cover it.” They’d agreed to split the rent equally three ways, no matter that Kori could afford to pay for all of them. Jason scowled at the suggestion.

“Not fucking likely.” No fucking way was he not going to pull his own fucking weight in his own goddamn apartment. “I’ll just get another job or something.” He only had two right now, after all. He could probably squeeze in another on the weekends or something. 

“Shit, man.” Roy looked sort of guilty for a moment, then brightened. “Dude, I’ve got the perfect idea. I know this guy... well, you’ll see. I’ll have him call you tomorrow.” Roy was snickering into his pizza by the time he finished his sentence. Jason frowned suspiciously.

“What the hell? You know some weird-ass people...” 

“And you don’t? You’ll see.”

“Whatever, I gotta go.” Jason stood and headed to his bedroom to shower and change before he headed out. If he left now, he could be there by seven.

________________________________________ 

Tim clutched his camera to his chest protectively as he walked. It was late, and bringing a fancy-looking camera with him on the streets of Gotham probably hadn’t been the best plan he’d ever come up with. He heard footsteps behind him, and quickened his pace. If it was one man, he could defend himself. But criminals in Gotham were known to travel in packs...

He’d been out taking photos for his photography elective, and been so engrossed he’d lost track of time. It was almost eleven now. A perfect time for muggings, he thought sarcastically. He’d been enrolled in a couple martial arts classes since he was seven, and he’d tried to keep up his training, but he’d been so busy lately... 

Ah. It wouldn’t matter at this point, anyway. 

There were at least four guys following him now. He sighed and stepped under the closest streetlight, wanting this confrontation to be as visible as possible. Placing his camera against the wall, he turned to face the approaching men.

________________________________________ 

Jason grinned inwardly as he waved goodbye to the kids. The ones who had a home to go home to had left already, but there were a good few who lived at the shelter. He shoved his hands into the pocket of his hoodie and turned down the street, heading home. It was pretty late, and he’d rather not be out any later than he had to. He may have grown up here, but this was still Gotham.

He didn't miss the days when he’d been a regular on the streets at night. Those days had been bad. Fighting on the streets, fighting at home... He’d been so stupid then, but he wouldn't wish his life or the Gotham City foster care system on anyone. That was why he liked to help out at the shelter. The people who ran it couldn’t afford to both pay workers and keep it open, so he did what he could.

His wandering thoughts were abruptly halted when he heard a shout from the street ahead. Picking up his pace, he turned left and stopped, taking in the scene. A kid was being cornered by four thugs who were backing him up against the brick wall. 

Jason groaned. Stupid kids, when would they learn not to go out at night? That was asking for trouble in this city. He jogged forward, yelling “Hey! Assholes!”

The thugs turned towards the shout. The kid, seeing an opening, took out the one on his left with a well-placed kick and escaped through the gap in the circle they’d formed around him. By this point, Jason was close enough to grab one of the thugs by the collar and punched him in the face, knocking out a few teeth. His target slumped to the ground, clutching at his face. Jason growled at the rest of the gang, standing there staring at him with frozen expressions. “Scram!” He kicked the guy on the ground, and the rest fled. Tch. Cowards. The one the kid’d knocked down stood and grabbed the guy with the bleeding face, dragging him away. Jason rolled his eyes and turned towards the kid, who was picking something up off the ground.

“Hey, kid. What the hell are you doing out here?”

The kid turned and faced him. Shit. At this point, he would recognize that face anywhere. It was his stalker, clutching a camera. A goddamn fancy camera, too. What was he, a _professional_ stalker?

“Uh... thanks. For helping me.” It was hard to tell in the dim light, but it looked like the kid was blushing. “I’m Tim. Uh, you work at the college, bookstore, right?” He finally turned his face up to look Jason in the eye.

“Yeah.” Jason’s voice was gruff. _You would know, wouldn’t you?_ “You haven’t answered my question. What the hell are you doing out here this late?”

Tim frowned. “I was just taking pictures for my photography class. It was daylight when I started.” Great. The kid might not actually be a stalker, but it looked like he also had no common sense. Jason was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt about the stalker thing for now. Not a professional, just a kid with a crush.

“Well, you got lucky this time, kid. You won’t always have someone around to save you.” Now they were both frowning.

“First of all, I’m not a kid. I’m twenty years old. Second of all, I can defend myself. But thanks anyway.” Tim turned away slightly, dismissively.

That was sort of a surprise, but he was careful not to let it show. The ki- _Tim_ -didn’t look older than seventeen. “Whatever. Where d’you live? I can take you home so we don’t have a repeat of that nice little scene.”

Tim was silent for a second, then turned back to Jason, his face impassive. “Alright. Thanks, Jason.”

“...I never told you my name.”

Tim was avoiding his gaze, now. “I, uh, remember it from your nametag. At the bookstore.” Jason rolled his eyes internally. Of course he did. “I only live a couple blocks from here.” Jason nodded, and they started walking. He put his hands back in his pocket and strolled alongside Tim for a while until the silence got to him.

“So, uh... you go to Gotham U, right? You studying photography or what?” 

Tim jumped a little, like he hadn’t been expecting Jason to say anything. “Um, no, I’m actually studying engineering. In the grad program. Photography is just something I do for fun,” he answered, not looking at Jason.

Jason whistled. “Shit, what are you, some kinda genius? You’re twenty, already in grad school _and_ you have time to take extra classes?” 

“Um... not really. I mean kind of. I mean- this is my apartment.” They stopped in front of a nondescript, typical Gotham brownstone. Not too nice, but not a dump either. So they did live close to each other after all. “Thanks for walking me back.”

“No problem. See ya around.” Jason gave a small wave and turned, missing Tim’s shy “See you” in return. _Weird kid_ , he thought as he headed home. _Smart, but weird._

________________________________________ 

Jason was awoken by the loud ringing of his cellphone the next morning. He waved his hand ineffectually in the direction of the nightstand until it connected with the phone, knocking it onto the floor. “Fuck.” He finally cracked an eye open and glared at it. It was nine AM on a Sunday, the one day a week he could sleep in. His shift at the bookstore wasn’t until three. Fucking phone.

Still squinting, he reached out an arm and groped around on the floor for his phone, leaning out of the bed until his lower body was the only part of him still in bed. Got it. Jason’s scowl didn’t abate as he read the display. A number he didn’t recognize flashed on the screen, but Jason answered anyway. “Hello?” he growled. He was being rude, but he didn’t really give a fuck right now.

“Hi! Is this Jason?” An annoyingly cheerful voice answered him.

“Yeah, that’s me,” Jason grunted.

“Great! My name’s Dick Grayson. I’m Roy’s friend. He told me you were looking for a job?”

“Yeah, sort of. What’s it to ya?” Jason still wasn’t feeling very charitable towards this annoying person who called him at nine o’clock in the morning, but the prospect of a job had him sitting up straighter. Well, metaphorically. He was still sprawled half on the floor, supported by his elbows, so he straightened those instead.

“Well, I manage a business of my own, and Roy thought you might be interested in working for me. I can tell you more when I get there.”

“What? You’re coming over here?” Not okay. Who the hell was this guy?

“Oh, yeah, that’s why I was calling, actually. To let you know. I was in the area, and I figured this would be easier to explain in person. I’ve visited Roy there a few times, so you don’t have to worry I’ll get lost or anything. I’ll be there in five minutes, okay? See ya!” He hung up.

Jason stared at the phone in his hand for a few seconds, processing. Christ. Roy had the weirdest friends. 

Oh, well. Nothing for it, he supposed. He was already awake. Jason heaved himself back onto the bed and swung his legs off this time. Locating a shirt, he pulled it on as he trudged down the hallway towards the kitchen. Roy and Kori were either asleep or not there, since both of their doors were closed. He yawned as he started the coffee maker. This Dick guy could deal with his lack of normal clothes and grogginess if he was going to come over on a Sunday fuckin’ morning. 

By the time Dick buzzed the door, Jason had already chugged one cup of coffee and hit the can. He hit the button to let Dick in, then went and poured himself another cup of coffee. Answering the knock on the door, he froze for a second as it swung open.

There was a cop standing in front of him. A very handsome cop, but a cop nonetheless.  
He arched an eyebrow and took a sip of coffee. “What can I do for you, officer?” 

A second of silence followed as the officer in front of him frowned, and Jason felt a brief second of panic. He knew he hadn’t done anything illegal recently, but who knew about Roy? Kori?

“Are you Jason Todd?” the policeman asked, still not smiling.

“What’s it to you?” He frowned back. 

The policeman abruptly broke into a smile, the grin lighting up his whole face. “I’m just messing with you! I’m Dick Grayson.” He held out his hand. Jason rolled his eyes and shook it, stepping aside to let Dick in.

“Then what the hell’s with the outfit? This some kind of fetish thing?” 

Dick laughed. “No, I’m really a police officer! My patrol just ended, so I thought I’d stop by to talk to you while I was in the neighborhood.”

That explained a few things, but... how the hell was Roy friends with a _cop_ of all people? And hadn’t he said he owned a business? There was no way Roy thought Jason’d be interested in law enforcement, surely. But Dick’s smile was charming, and he was just kinda standing in the middle of the living room, waiting for Jason, so Jason folded. “You want some coffee or something?”

“That’d be great, thanks!” Dick took a seat on their admittedly nice sofa. It was one of Kori’s contributions to their apartment, and Jason wasn’t about to complain about that particular expense. A comfortable sofa was one of the few essential pieces of furniture, in his opinion. Right up there with the toaster. 

Once Jason had returned to the living room and handed Dick his coffee, he cut to the chase. “So what’s this job offer? Cause I can save you some time and tell you no right now if you’re offering me a job as a cop.”

Dick just laughed. “No, nothing like that. Roy didn’t tell you anything, did he? Figures, he’s pretty much a jerk like that. Anyway, one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you in person was to check you out, too. Find out if you’re suitable. So this is kinda like an interview. See, I run a porn studio.” Dick’s earnest expression never wavered. Jason sat for a moment, waiting for Dick to break into laughter again. There was no way this guy was for real. 

When it didn’t happen, he finally said, “Seriously?”

Dick nodded. “Seriously. And we’re always looking for new actors.” 

Jason sat back in his chair. Porn star. Roy thought he would like to be a porn star. He’d definitely already known Roy was an asshole, and this definitely proved it. But at the same time it was oddly... flattering. Kind of. If he stopped to think about it. This meant both Roy and Dick at least thought he was attractive enough to be a porn star, not to mention desperate enough. Porn stars probably didn’t have to work very hard for what they were paid, either. He guessed from an outsider’s perspective, he was a pretty good fit for the job.  
Meanwhile, his mind was taking a detour back to his initial assumption about Dick’s uniform. “Hot cop” indeed.

Jason folded his hands behind his head and considered Dick. “How the hell did you come by a porn studio? You’re like, twenty-five.”

Dick was starting to fidget on the sofa. “I, uh, bought it. And I’m actually thirty-one.” Jason gave him what he thought was an encouraging look, and he continued. “Full disclosure, my dad is kinda... Bruce Wayne.” Jason’s eyebrows shot up. Dick’s name hadn’t sounded familiar, but he could remember reading about billionaire and media tycoon Bruce Wayne’s ward, who he’d taken in after his parents had died in a circus accident. There had been a lot of... speculation about his intentions. “He’s not actually my dad though.”

“ _Bruce Wayne_ owns a _porn studio_?” Jason couldn’t keep the incredulity out of his voice. 

“No, just me. Well, I may have used some of his money to acquire it, but it’s definitely my studio. I paid him back.” Dick’s voice, which hadn’t shown a hint of shame or anything but enthusiasm while he offered Jason a job as a porn star, grew slightly darker as he talked about Wayne. Interesting. “And if you work at my studio, you’ll be working for me, not him. I know that’s been a concern for some people.” 

Jason just stared, so Dick kept talking, sitting on his hands to keep from fidgeting. Jason could tell he was having a hard time both a) sitting still and b) not talking.  
“I know, weird, right? I actually worked there before I bought the place. Don’t raise your eyebrow at me. There are a lot of things the public doesn’t know about me. It was a bit of... post-teenage rebellion.”

“So you and Wayne don’t get along?”

“I wouldn’t say that. We’ve had our ups and downs, but we’re still pretty close. He lets me run a porn studio, after all.”

“Lets you? If he said you weren’t allowed to keep doing it, would you close the place down?” Jason could admit he wasn’t the nicest person around. He kinda wanted to see what it took to push this guy’s buttons. 

Dick frowned for the first time. “No... I don’t think he would do that. Anyway, let’s move on. Do you have any other relevant questions?” 

Dick looked at him expectantly, and Jason acquiesced. “Okay fine, so how the hell does Bruce Wayne’s son end up as both a cop and the owner of a porn studio? And if you and Roy are such close friends, why the hell has he never mentioned you before?”

“He never mentioned me at all?” Dick was totally pouting now in addition to his fidgeting. There was no way he was thirty-one years old. He barely acted twelve. “He and Kori tell me about you all the time...”

“Wait, you know Kori, too?” Jason was getting irritated. Neither of them had mentioned Dick to him. At least not by name. Who the hell knew why Harper did the things he did, and Kori... wasn’t really a surprise, he guessed, considering how famous she was, but seriously? 

“Yeah! We’re dating, actually!” There was that grin again.

Jason gave up. “What the fuck ever. Just answer my questions.”

“Okay... what were they, again? Oh, right. Uh... I always wanted to be a cop, I guess. After I dropped out of college, I decided to go for it. I’ve been in the force for eight years now!” Jason grudgingly awarded Dick a point for dropping out of college. Waste of time. “And I bought the studio... about two years ago, now. It’s doing pretty well, if you ask me.” He flashed his teeth at Jason again. “I try to keep my jobs pretty separate...”

Jason snorted. “I bet.” He couldn’t blame him. He assumed the studio was legal, but he doubted Dick wanted his cop buddies to find out what his other job was, either. “So tell me more about this place. What kind of shows do you do, what does it pay sort of thing...” 

Dick animatedly began to describe his studio: what kind of porn they did (mostly gay), how the job paid (well), what kind of hours he’d be working (pretty much whatever he wanted), the benefits...

For some reason, it was easy to trust Dick. Maybe it was his openness about his own life, maybe it was his boundless enthusiasm. Whatever the case, Jason found himself relaxing as he listened to Dick talk.

________________________________________ 

By the end of the conversation Jason had to admit he was pretty impressed. This job sounded... pretty awesome. With what it paid, he could probably shave some hours off his other jobs and still make more than he used to, with minimal effort. And he already knew he wouldn’t mind screwing virtual strangers for money; he basically did that any time he went to a club (minus the for money part). Before long, he’d agreed to stop by the studio tomorrow to check it out. Dick handed him a business card with “TITANS STUDIOS” printed boldly at the top, followed by Dick’s name and phone number, as well as the address of the studio. He’d have to get the story behind that name some other time.

“Can’t wait to see you tomorrow! Call me if you need anything!”

Jason pulled out his phone as he waved Dick out and texted Roy.

_You’re an asshole, Harper._


	3. Taking Care of Business

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This absolutely is not long enough to merit the long wait, sorry! Next chapter something interesting will finally happen... I promise.

Tim sat silently at his computer as he contemplated the events of the previous night. Determinedly, he deleted his security camera links and videos that he had saved from them. Now that he’d actually _met_ Jason, he felt weird keeping them. In fact, meeting Jason had dispelled some of the... fascination Tim had felt towards him. He was less of a mystery now. And Jason had acted kind of like a jerk, despite the fact that he’s helped him get away from those thugs. Their conversation had been unexpected, though, and sort of nice.... 

Tim pushed his chair from his desk with a sigh. There was no time to indulge his stupid infatuation right now. _Or ever_ , Tim corrected himself. If he saw Jason, he saw him, and if not, whatever. There were more important things to do than thinking about a guy who probably thought he was a little weirdo. He didn’t have class on Sunday, but he still had to go get some work done in the lab. Maybe if he finished by this afternoon, he could go hang out with Steph and Cass like Steph had been begging him to. Today was going to be a long day, and he had work early tomorrow morning. Dick had been understanding of his busy schedule and willing to accommodate him by letting him come in at weird times. Conner was the real help, though. Tim wasn’t sure what he did when not at work, but he’d be willing to bet Conner didn’t get up at 8AM for fun. There was nothing to be done about it, really, since he had lab all afternoon on Mondays. Whatever. Tim pushed it out of his mind and went to gather his books.

________________________________________ 

The next day, Jason headed to the “studio”, as Dick had referred to it. Jason had his doubts as to the validity of the term. Ostensibly he was to have an interview, but in reality he knew he was guaranteed the gig just by virtue of having mutual friends with Dick. Dick was a trusting kind of guy, Jason had noticed. He just knew Dick had that “a friend of yours is a friend of mine” kind of mentality that tended to come back and bite you in the butt.  
The studio was located in a nondescript part of the city, surrounded by stand-alone restaurants and sprawling parking lots as run-down as Crime Alley. The building housing the studio was likewise nondescript; the only identifying feature was a discreet sign on the door reading “Titan Studios”. Nothing to identify it as a porn studio, at least. And while Jason still wasn’t entirely sure what to expect on the inside, he felt the slightest bit relieved that the exterior wasn’t as tacky and obvious as he’d half-thought it might be.  
Parking his bike in the mostly-empty lot, he pushed open the glass door and entered a lobby. Huh. Definitely hadn’t expected a lobby, let alone one with a _receptionist_. What was this, a doctor’s office? He approached the redheaded woman seated behind the counter anyway, who greeted him as he came up. Jason nodded to her, saying, “Jason Todd. I’m here to see Dick Grayson.” 

“Oh, Dick’s new hire,” she said, leveling him with a serious look behind her glasses. “He’ll be right out.” Jason began to edge away slowly as she tapped something on her keyboard. Without breaking eye contact with him.

Well... that was unnerving. He looked away. She continued to look him over appraisingly as he stepped back, only looking away to glance at her computer screen and raise her eyebrows. 

“Hmmm.”

Luckily, Dick stepped into the room at that moment, breaking the tension. He smiled as he spotted Jason. 

“Hey!” he greeted, holding out his hand to Jason. Jason shook it, expression unchanging. Dick turned his smile on the receptionist. “Thanks, Babs. This is Roy and Kory’s friend I was telling you about. Jason, this is Babs. She’s our on-site manager.” Babs nodded at Jason coolly.

“It’s Barbara, actually.”

Dick ignored her comment. “I’m just gonna show him around today, give him a feel for the place. See how he likes it.” 

“Just try not to disturb the employees actually doing work,” was her only response before turning back to her computer screen.

Dick never stopped smiling as he gestured for Jason to precede him into a back room. “Babs isn’t too friendly when you first meet her, but she’ll warm up to you,” he assured Jason.  
Jason raised his eyebrow. 

“I was so worried.” 

“Yeah, well, try not to turn that snark on her. She won’t be amused,” Dick warned. “So this hallway leads to the production rooms, and the dressing rooms are this way...”  
Dick’s tour went quickly; the studio wasn’t extremely large. There were about five stages, five private dressing rooms, and a handful of offices and video editing studios. What really caught Jason’s attention was the cleanliness and care that had obviously been taken to keep the studio ...welcoming. It was a far cry from the sort of run-down crack den Jason had honestly been expecting. He’d been in strip clubs and brothels before, and this obviously wasn’t either one. His surprise must’ve shown on his face, because Dick grinned. 

“Nice, isn’t it? Well, most of our actors aren’t here yet. It’ll get a lot less peaceful when everyone gets here and filming starts for the day.”

“It’s already ten o’clock,” Jason said incredulously. “What time do you guys usually start?”

“Uh, around two,” Dick replied, his smile turning wry. “A lot of our actors have late nights, you know.”

“Oh. Right.” Well, he guessed he should’ve realized that one.

“But two of the stages are already in use. We’ve got a few dedicated early birds. Wanna take a peek?” Jason nodded, and Dick led him to one of the sets with a closed door. “The doors are closed when filming starts, but if you go in one of these side doors...” He opened a door a few feet away, indicating that Jason should enter.

Jason stepped inside, stopping almost immediately and staring at the room in front of him. It was... well, a viewing room. TV and computer monitors mounted on the walls displayed in high definition the scenes being played out in the rooms surrounding them. Jason took a moment to admire a platinum blonde girl going down on another, golden blonde young woman in a star-spangled outfit on the screen directly in front of him before stepping fully into the room and allowing Dick to close the door behind them.  
“Very nice,” he smirked, turning to face Dick. His breath hitched as he saw the monitor to his left, the only other one playing. “Really... nice.” 

The second screen showed two dark-haired men obviously deeply engrossed in their scene; a shorter man in a tacky red, green, and yellow outfit was being pinned to the “brick” wall by a taller, more muscled man in a skintight red and blue spandex bodysuit. The camera angle didn’t allow Jason to see their faces, but from what he could see, they certainly seemed to be enjoying themselves.  
“What’s with the outfits?” he asked, forcing his eyes away from the monitor and back to his host. “They’re fuckin’ blinding.”

Dick had a fond smile on his face this time as he replied, “These guys are part of our “superhero” series. Their costumes are supposed to be superhero costumes. You know, like Captain America or Spiderman. That green and red one used to be mine, you know.” His eyes definitely had a far-away look in them now. Jason snorted. 

“Getting nostalgic for your ugly-ass old costume now, Dick?” Dick looked at him reproachfully. Or tried to, but it came out as more like a pout. Either way, it was a relief. Jason had begun to think Dick didn’t have any facial expressions other than his dopey smile. Smirking, not really caring that he seemed to have hurt Dick’s feelings, Jason turned back towards the second monitor. And stared. The camera angle had shifted, and the faces of the actors were clearly visible as the taller guy dropped to his knees, revealing... Tim.

That was unmistakably _Tim_ there, pressed against the wall with his eyes closed and his hands clenched into fists, tangling in the other guy’s hair, mouth opening and closing in short gasps as the tall guy licked his crotch through his green, scaly shorts. This was... really hot, and shit, really the last place he would have expected to see Tim again.

“They’re great, aren’t they?” And shit, Jason could _hear_ the fucking fond smile back in Dick’s voice. He nodded. “That’s Tim, and the guy on his knees is Conner. They’re a really popular pair with the fans.”

“I bet.” Jason tore his eyes away from the screen for the second time, glancing over at Dick.

“So, what do you think?” Dick asked, his attention focused entirely on Jason. “Do you think you want to sign on with us?”

“You know...” Jason started, turning his gaze back to the pair on screen, “I think I do.”

________________________________________ 

Dick’s enthusiasm got him through the rest of the morning, setting him up as an employee and helping him schedule his new job around his bookstore and pizza shop hours. In the end, his schedule was all over the place. Dick even let him have a shorter shift than was usually allowed on Saturday just to squeeze some hours in.

“Wanna stick around for a couple hours and meet the rest of the actors?” Dick had asked him. Jason had declined, honestly in a hurry to escape. To Dick he’d excused himself by saying he had to get ready for his afternoon bookstore shift. Really, he needed time to think. To process the information. To figure out how he could look at Tim with a straight face in the bookstore the next time he saw him. 

As he returned to the lobby, Dick’s cheerful “See you Wednesday!” echoing after him, he encountered Barbara again. She spoke up before he could escape.

“Welcome to the family, Jason.”


End file.
